Europeans’ Digital Cultural Participation: Diversification, Democratization, Barriers, and Affordances

Authors

  • Susanne Janssen Erasmus University Rotterdam, Dept. of Media and Communication
  • Nete Nørgaard Kristensen University of Copenhagen, Dept. of Communication
  • Marc Verboord Erasmus University Rotterdam, Dept. of Media and Communication
  • Franziska Marquart University of Copenhagen, Dept. of Communication
  • Guiseppe Lamberti Unviversitat Autonoma de Barcelona

Keywords:

cross-national research, cultural participation, digital cultural participation, digital culture, digital inequality, Europe, Internet use, survey

Abstract

Research on digital cultural participation has focused chiefly on single-country studies and specific activities, hampering generalization. Using representative 2021 survey data from nine European countries, we analyzed Europeans’ digital cultural participation, identifying three key dimensions: cultural information and access, audiovisual entertainment, and content creation and sharing. Our analysis examined sociodemographic, attitudinal, and behavioral predictors to understand the participation patterns, barriers, and affordances associated with various types of digital cultural participation. The findings support the “cultural democracy” model over the “democratization of culture” model, highlighting the diversification of cultural participation alongside persistent barriers and inequalities. Sociocultural affordances and offline cultural participation strongly influence digital activities, with individual traits being more influential than national factors. 

Author Biographies

Susanne Janssen, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Dept. of Media and Communication

Susanne Janssen, PhD, is a professor of sociology of media and culture at Erasmus University’s School of History, Culture, and Communication. Her research interests include the role of mediators in cultural production and consumption; the social valuation and classification of culture; and the impacts of globalization, migration, increased diversity, and digitalization on institutions, practices, and policies in the fields of culture, media, and education. 

Nete Nørgaard Kristensen, University of Copenhagen, Dept. of Communication

Nete Nørgaard Kristensen, PhD is a professor of media studies in the Department of Communication at the University of Copenhagen, where she serves as the Head of Section of Media Studies. She specializes in research about media and popular culture, cultural journalism and cultural criticism across platforms, and political communication.

Marc Verboord, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Dept. of Media and Communication

Marc Verboord (PhD, Utrecht University) is a professor of media and society in the department of Media and Communication at Erasmus University Rotterdam. His research focuses on media consumption, societal impacts of media use, cultural globalization, and institutional legitimacy in times of digitalization.

Franziska Marquart, University of Copenhagen, Dept. of Communication

Franziska Marquart, PhD., is an assistant professor of communication at the University of Copenhagen. Her research focuses on the content and effects of online and offline political communication, with an emphasis on youth audiences and social media use. She has a special interest in visual communication and visual methods and investigates attention and exposure to political information in multimodal information environments. Prior to her work in Copenhagen, she was a postdoctoral researcher at the Amsterdam School of Communication Research.

Guiseppe Lamberti, Unviversitat Autonoma de Barcelona

Statistician/Data scientist/Lecturer, Autonoma University of Barcelona, Spain.

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Published

2024-09-28

Issue

Vol. 18 (2024)

Section

Articles

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